Dragon Sinker: Descendants of Legend Review: A Winner or a Stinker?

Enter the Dragon Sinker

In the year since the Nintendo Switch launched there has been a surprising pethera of indie games to play. From platformers to puzzlers, games with a pixel art style seem to be represented at every corner of the eShop. And while one might be at their fill of pixelated indies there is one genre that has been absent. A genre that has memories flooding back of that one parent tripping over the power cord of your console as you and your best friend both hold your breath and wait to see if you’ve lost hours upon hours of progress, Im talking about classic style JRPG’s. Games that are akin to the 8-bit versions of the Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest franchises of days gone. The lack of an 8-bit JRGP on the Switch felt like an injustice that needed to be rectified and that’s exactly what KEMCO and Exe-Crate Inc. did with Dragon Sinker: Descendants of Legend for the Nintendo Switch.

I’m Sure We’ve Been Here Before

Dragon Sinker hits your right in the nostalgia’s from the moment the title screen appears. Blasting beautiful chiptunes right into your earholes. But the nostalgia doesn’t stop there. In typical JRPG form you set out on your quest to slay the evil Dragon Wyrmvarg. To do so you’ll need 3 legendary weapons. The same ones your ancestors used generations before to lock away the dastardly dragon. As you progress through Dragon Sinker: Descendants of Legend for the Nintendo Switch you end up with 3 parties to swap between. Those consists of humans, elves and dwarfs. You can add up to 12 additional party members to each of your squads through optional side quests and a lottery function.

In a game flooded with homage to the classics, it isn’t without it’s modern sensibilities. The battle system gives the welcome addition of auto battles. Something that comes in handy when you’re facing a much weaker enemy or trying to grind to level up your characters. You can also use in game points called DRP to resurrect your parties from the dead while giving them full MP and HP right in the heat of battle which is a huge time saver and allows for a much more accessible JRPG experience.

The House Wins

Dragon Sinker was originally a mobile game that made its way to consoles and even the 3DS. Given its roots in mobile there are some microtransaction-esq features baked in. There is a lottery system that allows you to add unique animal characters to your party. And who wouldn’t want that right? Unfortunately using those DRP for the lottery do feel a bit unfair. During my time with the game I was unable to acquire an animal companions. There is also a DRP shop, this actually takes you to the Nintendo eshop to buy items/scrolls for new abilities. While annoying to know that it’s there, I never once felt like I needed to buy anything from the store to progress forward in the game.

The Bottom Line

Dragon Sinker: Descendants of Legend on the Nintendo Switch does a great job of tugging at those rose colored heart strings while adding some modern sensibilities.This game is suited for fans of the genre or newcomers looking for an accessible pick up and play JRPG. Don’t expect a game that pushes the limits of what an JRPG should be or something that evolves the genre. Retro gamers looking for an affordable nostalgic blast from the past without having to “sinker” too much time into a game will have a legendary time.